The Union of the Armenian Evangelical Churches in the Near East (UAECNE) held a 108th anniversary service of remembrance for the martyrs of the Armenian Genocide Monday, 24 April 2023, in the Emmanuel Armenian Evangelical Church of Nor Amanos (Lebanon).

The congregation was joined by a delegation from Switzerland representing the Protestant Church of Switzerland. Also present was Mr. Mihran Shaninian, attending on behalf of the S.D. Hunchakian Party.

Rev. Jirayr Ghazarian, noting the painful reality of the day, read Psalm 88 as a collective expression of lament, and invited those present to open their hearts before God, whereupon he offered the opening prayer.

The theological students of the UAECNE took part in the service, with Mr. George al Sahili reading Psalm 32 and Miss Aline Tahazian reading Romans 5.3-11.

NICOSIA - Day-by-day overview of the conference "10 years after Ecclesia in Medio Oriente - Rooted in Hope", that saw the gathering of all the Catholic Churches of the Middle East in the city of Nicosia, to discuss the impact of Pope Benedict's Apostolic Exhortation and the future implications for the Churches of the region.

Day 1: welcoming speeches by H.E. Claudio Gugerotti, Prefect of the Dicastery for the Eastern Churches and President of the Symposium, and H.E Gian Petro Dal Toso, Apostolic Nuncio for Jordan and Cyprus, prayers in various rites, and a talk by His Beatitude Pierbattista Pizzaballa, Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, during which he presented the Exhortation, the events that took place since its publication, and, in its light, some possible orientations for the Churches of the region.

Day 2: after a Holy Mass celebrated according to the Chaldean rite by Cardinal Louis Sako, the morning was split between three talks. First speaker was H.E. Paolo Martinelli, ofm cap, Apostolic Vicar for the UAE, Yemen and Oman, who spoke of the essentiality of Christian formation and its challenges. "The fundamental challenge for Christian formation," he notably said, "could be summarized in these terms: "One must move from a Christianity transmitted by convention through a social bond taken for granted to a Christianity transmitted by conviction, intercepting the new anthropological questions that the younger generations have in their hearts, aroused by the unprecedented situations they face in order to work, live and love."

On Sunday April 23, 2023, at the Papal Residence in Cairo, His Holiness Pope Tawadros II, Pope of Alexandria and Patriarch of the See of St. Mark, received the priests and servants of the Jerusalem League in Cairo, where they presented to His Holiness the Holy Light, which was sent by His Eminence Bishop Antonius, Metropolitan of Jerusalem and the Near East, to Egypt for the second year in a row.

Sunday, April 10/23, 2023, was celebrated by the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem as Antipascha or Thomas Sunday, that is, as a commemoration of the fact that the Lord on the eighth day after His Resurrection appeared to the disciples again, as they were gathered in the Upper room with the doors closed when Thomas was also with them and He said to Thomas: “bring your finger here and put it in my side and do not be an unbeliever but a believer”, “because you have seen and believed in me, blessed are those who have not seen and believe”, (John 20, 27-29).

This event was celebrated during Vespers in the evening in the Catholicon of the Church of the Resurrection and the Divine Liturgy in the morning in the Holy and Life-giving Sepulchre, presided over by His Eminence Metropolitan Isychios of Kapitolias, concelebrated by their Eminences, the Metropolitan Ioannikios of Montenegro and Archbishop Makarios of Qatar, Hagiotaphite Hieromonks and deacons. The chanting was delivered by His Eminence Archbishop of Aristovoulos of Madaba and Hierodeacon Simeon. The service was attended by the Consul General of Greece in Jerusalem Mr Evangelos Vlioras and the Consul Mrs Christina Zacharioudaki and their families, as well as the pilgrims visiting for Easter.

His Beatitude Patriarch John X, Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch and All the East, and President of the Middle East Council of Churches for the Orthodox family, Presides over an extraordinary session of the Holy Synod of Antioch, which convenes today, Tuesday 25 April 2023, in Balamand, Lebanon. During this session, the attendees discuss emergency situations and urgent events.

"Ecclesia in Medio Oriente", Cyprus, Sunday April 23, 2023

By the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch and All the East and the Syriac Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch and All the East

Beloved brothers, sisters, and spiritual children,
Christ is Risen! Truly, He is Risen!
We greet you today in this festive and exalted Paschal period, having our eyes fixed on the cross of suffering, and knowing that the Lord of glory transformed this cross of suffering into a cross of glory. Today, we remember the cross carried by the Christians living in this Middle East, suffering from murder, displacement, and terror. Today, we remember the spear which has marked for us as Christians, in the last two thousand years, the Passion of our Lord at the Calvary, and the other spear which has wounded us for the last ten years ago, and this wound has not been healed. Today, we remember the kidnapping of our brothers, the Archbishops of Aleppo, Youhanna Ibrahim and Boulos Yazigi, which occurred on April 22, 2013.

His Holiness Pope Tawadros II, Pope of Alexandria and Patriarch of the See of St. Mark, sent a congratulatory message to the Grand Imam, Dr. Ahmed Al-Tayyib, Sheikh of Al-Azhar Al-Sharif, on the occasion of Eid Al-Fitr, which reads as follows:
The Grand Imam, Sheikh of Al-Azhar, Dr. Ahmed Al-Tayeb
On my behalf and on behalf of the Egyptian Coptic Orthodox Church, I am pleased to congratulate you and all our beloved Muslims on the occasion of Eid Al-Fitr.
We pray that God grant you success in completing your work to raise our dear homeland and your enlightening role in spreading awareness and the values of tolerance, brotherhood, the culture of peace, citizenship and coexistence.

April 17, 2023

His Beatitude John X, Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch and All the East, paid a visit to visited Turkish Mersin Governor Ali Hamza Pehlivan, accompanied by Bishops Constantine Kayal and Arsenios Dahdal, Father Esper Timur, parish priest of the Archangels Michael and Gabriel in Mersin, Archimandrite Paul Ordoloǧlu, Vicar of Patriarch John in Antioch, and the President of the Association in the parish of Mersin, Mr. Jan Arab, at the governor's residence in Mersin.

At the outset, the governor of Mersin, Mr. Ali Hamza Pahlawan, welcomed His Beatitude and the accompanying delegation, thanking him for the stance of love and brotherhood that he took during such a difficult and hard circumstance that afflicted the people of the region after the earthquake. The governor commended the merits of His Beatitude, who stood by his children from the first moment, promising Patriarch John to complete and provide aid In Mersin, Antioch, Iskenderun, and wherever needed, to alleviate the suffering and pain of the Church's children in these hard conditions.

On Monday 18 April 2023 morning, the Monastery of St. Virgin Mary El-Syrian in Wadi El-Natrun hosted His Holiness Pope Tawadros II, Pope of Alexandria and Patriarch of the See of St. Mark, and a number of Bishops and Metropolitan for breakfast.
H.H. delivered a spiritual sermon on the occasion of the Resurrection during the meeting, which is an annual tradition of Sham El-Nassim for H.H. and the members of the Holy Synod.

On Saturday April 15, 2023 evening, His Holiness Pope Tawadros II, Pope of Alexandria and Patriarch of the See of St. Mark, prayed the Resurrection Liturgy at St. Mark’s Cathedral, Abbasia, Cairo, with the contribution of several General Bishops Vice patriarchy in Cairo along with some priests and monks. The Divine Liturgy witnessed the participation of a large number of people.

The prayers were broadcast on Egyptian television, Official Website of the Coptic Orthodox Church, Coptic satellite channels, and the COC channel of the Coptic Orthodox Church’s media center on the Internet.

The cathedral witnessed a large number of people who came to congratulate, from among statesmen, representatives of many institutions and bodies, and ambassadors of some countries, while the sides of the cathedral were filled with worshipers from the church.

His Holiness Pope Tawadros II, Pope of Alexandria and Patriarch of the See of St. Mark, prayed Good Friday prayers at St. Mark’s Cathedral in Abbaseya. The prayers started early in on Friday 14 April 2023 morning and ended around evening time. The prayers consisted of six prayers which are the first, third, sixth, ninth, eleventh and twelfth hours of Good Friday prayers, which goes moment by moment of the events of the day on which Christ was crucified, starting from when He was arrested, passing through the stages of condemning the Savior and from His Crucifixion to the tomb.
The cathedral was full of people who filled its both sides.
A number of general bishops of the dioceses in Cairo, priests of the churches, and deacons of the Theological College in Anba Rouis participated in the prayers.

In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, one God. Amen.

Khristos Anesti … Alithos Anesti

Christ is Risen … Truly He is Risen

I congratulate you all on the glorious Feast of Resurrection in the year 2023. We celebrate the glorious Resurrection after a prolonged fast. The Holy Lent that extended for 55 days. We celebrate the Resurrection as we do annually. As you know, the feast of the Resurrection is a celebration of the foundation of our faith. This feast of the Resurrection is a celebration of Christianity, a celebration of faith in Christ. As such, we celebrate the Resurrection each day in the prayer of the prime hour of the Agpeya. Moreover, we celebrate it each week on Sunday. Because it is the day of Resurrection, the Day of Light. We also celebrate it on the 29th of every Coptic month when we commemorate the Annunciation, Nativity, and Resurrection. We celebrate it every year on the glorious Feast of Resurrection, and our celebration extends for 50 days, which we call the Holy Fifties.

Indeed, the blessings of the Resurrection are innumerable in our life. I would like to discuss with you one of the rich gifts of the Resurrection of the King of glory. This is the gift of a positive vision toward life.

On April 17, 2023, His Holiness Patriarch Mor Ignatius Aphrem II, Patriarch of Antioch and All the East and Supreme Head of the Universal Syriac Orthodox Church, celebrated the Holy Qurobo of Monday of the resurrection at St. George Church in Hay El-Seryan in Aleppo.

During the Holy Qurobo, His Holiness was assisted by their Eminences Archbishops: Mor Boutros Kassis, Archbishop of Aleppo and Environs, and Mor Joseph Bali, Patriarchal Assistant.

On April 15, 2023, His Holiness Patriarch Mor Ignatius Aphrem II, Patriarch of Antioch and All the East and Supreme Head of the Universal Syriac Orthodox Church, celebrated the Holy Qurobo of the Easter Vigil at St. Aphrem Cathedral in Aleppo.

During the Holy Qurobo, His Holiness was assisted by their Eminences Archbishops: Mor Boutros Kassis, Archbishop of Aleppo and Environs, Mor Joseph Bali, Patriarchal Assistant, and Armenian Orthodox Archbishop of Aleppo Magar Ashkarian.

On April 14, 2023, His Holiness Patriarch Mor Ignatius Aphrem II, Patriarch of Antioch and All the East and Supreme Head of the Universal Syriac Orthodox Church, celebrated the services of the worship and burial of the Cross at St. George Church in Hay El-Seryan in Aleppo.

Their Eminences Archbishops: Mor Boutros Kassis, Archbishop of Aleppo and Environs, Mor Joseph Bali, Patriarchal Assistant, and Very Rev. Raban Augeen Al-Khoury Nemat, Patriarchal Secretary were also present.

On Easter Monday, 4th/ 17th April 2023, the feast of Pascha was celebrated with its befitting brilliance at the monastic Church of Saints Constantine and Helen, led by the Hegoumen of the Brotherhood, His Beatitude Patriarch Theophilos III, Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem, as the service was officiated by the Typikon keeper of the Church Archimandrite Alexios, with the participation in prayer of High Priests and Priests and the representatives of the Russian Church, Archimandrite Alexander and the Romanian Church, Archimandrite Theophilos. The service was attended by the Consul General of Greece in Jerusalem Mr Evangelos Vlioras and a very large congregation of pilgrims.

After the Divine Liturgy, the Patriarchal Entourage went to the Patriarchate Hall.

Early on Sunday morning at 01.00, 3rd/ 16th April 2023, the Service of the Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ, the feast of Pascha, was celebrated at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.

On this feast the Church commemorates that the incarnate Jesus Christ, our Lord, was crucified, died in the flesh and was risen from the dead as God-man, granting to His believers eternal life and the resurrection from the dead.

For this feast the Hagiotaphite Brotherhood went to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, where bells tolling, the Canon of Holy Saturday was chanted, while the clergy, with their Primate, His Beatitude the Patriarch of Jerusalem Theophilos were being dressed. This was followed by a litany, three times around the Holy Sepulchre.

Then His Beatitude read the Gospel narrative of the Resurrection according to Saint Mark, followed by Christ is risen and the rest of the service of the Resurrection, with the Liturgy of Saint John Chrysostom.

At noon of the luminous day of Pascha Sunday, 3rd / 16th April 2023, the service of the Second Resurrection was held at the Patriarchate.

The service started at the Patriarchate Hall, where His Beatitude Patriarch Theophilos III, Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem, the High Priests and the Priests read the 9th Hour of Pascha and got dressed in their liturgical vestments.

Then under the chanting of “Christ is risen” in a slow Byzantine rhythm by their Eminences, Archbishop Aristovoulos of Madaba and Metropolitan Joachim of Helenoupolis, the Brotherhood marched in procession to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and stopped at the Court Yard for a supplication.

On Holy Thursday evening, March 31/ April 13, 2023, the Service of the Passion was held at the Catholicon of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.

 His Beatitude the Patriarch of Jerusalem Theophilos, who presided over this service, read the first Gospel narrative, followed by Hagiotaphite High Priests and Priests, who read the remaining of the 12 narratives, according to the Order.

This service, which is the Matins of Holy Friday commemorates the Lord’s Passion, the spitting, the beating, the vinegar, the nails, the spear and the death on the Cross, through which He saved us.